I'm still a poor little sick blogger, so I'm just going to put together a short Buffet of the Week until I feel well enough to write a substantial post. In the mean time, I've quarantined myself to my bedroom. At least So You Think You Can Dance is on tonight.
New Hampshire is now the SIXTH state in the nation to allow same-sex marriage. WOOT!
An article in Newsweek asks: can same-sex marriage save the economy? Ignore the offensive and not even remotely clever headline.
This morning, President Obama delivered a speech in Cairo, Egypt, where he addressed global women's rights.
This Orville Redenbacher commercial made my heart smile.
File this under "appalling." A man has been arrested for sexually assaulting an unconscious woman and broadcasting it over the internet. I'm not only disgusted with the man who did this, but also the pervs who watched it.
Many polls are showing that the majority of the public supports the confirmation of Sonia Sotomayor.
Horrifying piece of information #1: A manput an ad on CraigsList that called for someone to come into his house and rape his wife. Horrifying piece of information #2: someone actually answered it.
The month of June was selected to celebrate GLBTQ pride to commemorate the Stonewall riots. It was on June 28, 1969 that a gay bar called the Stonewall Inn was raided by New York police. Tensions between NY police and gay residents of Greenwich Village erupted into protests, and within weeks, Village residents had organized into activist groups with the mission of creating a safe place for people to be open about their sexual orientations without the fear of getting arrested. Ultimately, the Stonewall riots launched the gay rights movement across the nation.
TODAY
President Obama is commending Gay Pride Month by once again expressing his commitment to expanding the rights of GLBT people. In a proclamation, he stated:
I continue to support measures to bring the full spectrum of equal rights to LGBT Americans.
The proclamation also discussed his legislative priorities, including overturning the "Don't Ask Don't Tell" policy and the Defense of Marriage Act. He is unarguably more committed to gay rights than any other president the U.S. has seen. From Pride.BarackObama.com:
GAY PRIDE MONTH EVENTS
There are tons and tons of wonderful events for GLBTQ people and straight allies to attend to celebrate the queer community.
If you're like me and you live in or near New York, you can visit NYCPride.org for the entire list of gay pride events, taking place between June 20th and 28th.
Pride is also huge in San Francisco, where there are events all throughout the month. The main pride celebration will take place on June 27th and 28th.
Boston has events from June 5th to the 14th. The Pride Parade will be held on June 13th at noon.
But this only covers a fraction of the events happening in every state. You can check out the entire Gay Pride Month calendar, which includes events across the country and in other countries alike, to find an event near you.
A new soldier helping to attract others to the military was shot and killed outside an Army recruiting office today and a second soldier was wounded, and a suspect was arrested, police said.
A man inside a black vehicle pulled up outside the Army-Navy recruiting office in west Little Rock and opened fire about 10:30 a.m., said police Lt. Terry Hastings.
The two soldiers were outside the office when they were shot. They were taken to a hospital, where one died.
Though I'm never too thrilled myself when I see military recruiters, shooting them is never the answer. Amazing people (Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr.) have gotten so many things done in the past by employing non-violent methods... why can't we follow their examples? Shooting an enemy might provide gratification in the moment, but what does it solve in the long-run? Absolutely nothing.
Remember when Operation Rescue, a prominent pro-life organization, expressed its "outrage" at Dr. Tiller's death?
We are shocked at this morning's disturbing news that Mr. Tiller was gunned down...Operation Rescue has worked for years through peaceful, legal means, and through the proper channels to see him brought to justice. We denounce vigilantism and the cowardly act that took place this morning.
Well now, apparently Dr. Tiller "reaped what he sowed."
Saying that Dr. Tiller "reaped what he sowed" is a way of excusing the horrific terrorist act of murdering an abortion provider. Saying he "reaped what he sowed" implies that he deserved what he got. CERTAINLY, if Operation Rescue "denounces vigilantism and the cowardly act" of murdering for political purposes, they couldn't possibly believe that Dr. Tiller deserved to die?
Oh, but they do. They do. You cannot assert that pro-life organizations, even the ones who publicly denounce the use of violence to assert the anti-choice agenda, are not somewhat responsible for acts such as these. Even though an anti-choice organization might not use direct violence as a tactic, the tactics they do use are inherently violent and gruesome in nature. Displaying large photographs of dismembered fetuses, carrying jars with real fetuses, calling and threatening clinic employees, yelling obscenities at women who enter clinics... these are all, in one way or another, violent acts. They are strategies that breed hatred and anger, leaving many furious anti-choice activists one step away from picking up a gun.
An anti-choice organization cannot separate itself from terrorist acts when they condone activists doing everything but. How can anyone possibly argue that the only person responsible for George Tiller's death is the man who shot him? Yes, most likely, no one forced him to pull the trigger, but you cannot assert that anti-choice propaganda didn't propel him in this direction. He wasn't born a murderer and a terrorist.
And what about the radical "pro-life" organizations? What about Army of God? They certainly condone violence. Currently, on the top of their website, in huge bold letters, it says:
The lives of innocent babies scheduled to be murdered by George Tiller are spared by the action of American hero Scott Roeder. George Tiller the Babykiller reaped what he sowed and is now in eternal hell.
Psalm 55:15 Let death seize upon them, and let them go down quick into hell: for wickedness is in their dwellings, and among them.
George Tiller will never murder another child again. Abortionist George Tiller, now in eternal hell fire for shedding the blood of innocent children.
George Tiller's murderer is an "American hero." Army of God even holds banquets, called the White Rose Banquet, to honor anti-choice extremists who have been jailed or executed for committing terrorist acts, such as bombings and shootings.
Though Army of God is the most extreme branch of the pro-life movement, you cannot possibly argue that encouraging people to participate in the type of activism that involves screaming at their opponents and shoving photos of mutilated fetuses in their faces doesn't encourage some people to consider picking up a gun or a bomb.
It pisses me off that not one person in the pro-life movement seems to be willing to re-examine the tactics used by their activists in an attempt to identify any catalysts for violence. Instead, the defenses have gone up, and no one wants to take any responsibility.
Kierra Johnson of Choice Words wrote a beautiful piece on her last encounter with Dr. George Tiller. I felt tears well up in my eyes while reading it. Take a few minutes to give it a read.
Oh oh! I meant to post this a few weeks ago, but I completely forgot. I came across the most adorable feminist shop on the wonderful Etsy.com. Viva La Craft sells the cutest menstrual calendars to keep track of your period. Only $3 a pop too!
Each calendar features a different character from her Viva La Woman design, which happens to be on a poster on my wall.
As the days pass, we will undoubtedly uncover more about the murder of Dr. George Tiller, from information released by the police to general discussion held by feminists regarding what we can do. First and foremost, DailyKosTV has released a compilation video of the various attacks Bill O'Reilly has led on Dr. Tiller. Jed Lewison made an extremely important point in saying, "As you can see from these video clip samplings of O'Reilly's holy war, you don't have to actually pull the trigger to help sponsor terrorism."
Circulate this video around the net to show that breeding blind hatred can lead to unspeakable acts.
Since the killing, President Obama has released this statement:
I am shocked and outraged by the murder of Dr. George Tiller as he attended church services this morning. However profound our differences as Americans over difficult issues such as abortion, they cannot be resolved by heinous acts of violence.
Also, police have taken a suspect into custody; a 51-year-old who was arrested some 170 miles away in suburban Kansas City three hours after the shooting. They are pretty sure the man acted alone, but they are investigating whether or not the suspect had ties to any anti-choice organizations.
WHAT YOU CAN DO
Feministing has a great list up with many suggestions on how to take action, but I'll try to cover some of the options they might have missed.
Also, as I suggested in my last post on this topic, Medical Students for Choice is a wonderful place to donate. They allow you to make donations in memory of people, so be sure to put in Dr. George Tiller's name if you do.
NARAL Pro-Choice Ohio made a memorial blog, in which you can donate as well.
If you do not have many funds available yourself, consider holding a "party with a purpose," or a social gathering in which you ask attendants to give what they can. Medical Students for Choice has a party kit with many resources to get you started.
Volunteer
Consider offering your help to your local Planned Parenthood. Many of them need clinic escorts to protect patients from rowdy anti-choice protesters.
You can also search for open jobs and internships at a NARAL near you.
Attend a Vigil
Wonderfully, there are many candlelight vigils in Dr. Tiller's honor. Feministing has a bunch posted, or you can search Facebook to find one near you. If you don't see one in your area, consider organizing one. If you need help promoting your vigil, feel free to contact me and I can write a post about it.
Spark Discussion
It is extremely important to talk about this. Talk to your friends, your family, the check-out attendant at the grocery store - whether they be pro-choice or pro-life, it is crucial to encourage discussion and debate.
AfterEllen.com, the popular website for queer women, has released their annual Hot 100. The Hot 100 is meant to give lesbian and bi women a voice in "mainstream, heterocentric pop culture" to identify the women they find sexy.
Portia De Rossi topped the list at #1, and Ellen DeGeneres came in at #15. Some of my favorites on the list? Ellen Page, Tina Fey, Michelle Obama, Meryl Streep, Sandra Oh, Rachel Maddow, and Amanda Palmer, among many others. There are also "supplementary" lists: Hottest Women of Color, Hottest Out Women, and Hottest Women Over 40.
I love that queer women are being given the opportunity to have their voices heard, but I still yearn for more "hot 100" lists that celebrate more than a woman's looks. But I do realize that many of the women on the AfterEllen list are attractive for reasons other than looks - for example, I know Rachel Maddow was on that list for not just her androgynous hottness, but also her intelligence and passion. Still, I have to agree with Sinclair Sexsmith, author of The Sugarbutch Chronicles when he said, "according to this list, sexy women are feminine." There was undoubtedly a blatant lack of sexy genderqueer and butch women on the list.
Because of this, Sinclair Sexsmith is asking for nominations for the Hot Butches of 2009. Submit yours!
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